Will Wade reveals key to making game hard for Jaden Shackelford
Unranked LSU picked up a huge win to finish its regular-season campaign with a 21-10 (9-9) record, as Will Wade and the Tigers knocked off the No. 25 Alabama Crimson Tide by an 80-77 final — and to Wade’s credit, LSU did a terrific job shutting down some of Alabama’s most lethal scorers, including Jaden Shackelford.
Shackelford, a 6-foot-3, 200-pound guard has been arguably Alabama’s most valuable player on the offensive end this season, averaging 16.6 points, 5.4 rebounds and 1.5 assists per contest, while shooting 39.3 percent from the field. The story could not have been more different for Shackelford on Saturday, who couldn’t seem to get anything to fall against LSU. Wade’s game plan successfully limited Shackelford to just six points on 3-of-14 from the field, including 0-for-8 from deep, and a turnover.
“We had to steal the ball (from Alabama). I mean, Shackelford — look, he missed some open looks. He was off rhythm, he was 0-of-8 from three I believe, 3-of-14 from the field,” Wade said after LSU upended Alabama. “He had some tough drives that he was able to finish. He’s a good finisher. Certainly, we wanted to give attention to Shackelford, we wanted to stay on him in the corner. We didn’t want to let him have wide-open catch-and-shoot looks, and we had to start staying on (Keon) Ellis when he got hot at the beginning of the second half. So, I thought shutting down Shackelford was certainly a big key to the game.”
With LSU’s performance, the Tigers cliched a No. 5 seed in the SEC Tournament, and Wade will lead the Tigers to battle on Thursday against the winner of No. 12 Missouri and No. 13 Ole Miss.
Will Wade gives injury update on Xavier Pinson following Alabama win
Though Wade and LSU came away with a win, it came at a cost, as senior guard Xavier Pinson went down with an injury in the process.
Pinson has been a significant contributor for LSU this season, averaging 10.4 points, 2.7 rebounds, 4.6 assists and 1,8 steals per contest, while playing an average of 27.3 minutes per game. However, LSU heads into postseason play with a huge question mark on its roster, as Pinson’s status — at least at the moment — remains unclear. In overtime of Saturday’s contest, Pinson banged knees with Alabama Crimson Tide guard JD Davison. He was helped to the sideline and did not return to the contest, ultimately logging eight points and eight assists in 39 minutes played.
Wade provided some clarity on Pinson, one of his most consistent guards, after the victory, and provided some welcome news for LSU fans: it appears that Pinson is OK.
“He’s fine,” Wade said, shrugging off a question about Pinson’s injury status. “He got knocked around and his knee popped. He’ll be fine.”
Though Wade’s answer, word-for-word, was a bit unclear, his tone was quite the opposite. Wade expressed confidence when he said that his guard was “fine,” and it appears that LSU might have Pinson moving forwards after all.
Pinson, a senior, may not have played until the game’s final whistle due to injury, but he helped LSU to an overtime win when it mattered most. Not only was LSU able to continue to make some noise before the SEC Tournament, but Pinson was able to do it on Senior Day. LSU honored its seniors before the game, and Pinson received a standing ovation from the crowd in Baton Rouge when he came onto the court.